I remember the day I moved into my dorm freshman year. I can remember when I met my roommate, Reggie. I remember how happy and proud my parents were when they dropped me off.
When I think about my progression from that day to the second I wrote this article, my first thought is about how young I was. Yes, younger numerically but more so emotionally, intellectually, and also, in terms of, maturity.
A journey is a perfect word to describe college, particularly for me. Coming into college I had no conception of what I wanted to do in life. I knew I could be anything I wanted to be (at least that's what my dad says), but that is easier said than done. I had no intended major coming into college because I was aware (told) that I could do anything in this world.
After three and a half years of school, I still have no clear idea of what I want my life to look like.
Notice the jump from major to life-course?
What I've learned in these 39 months is that college is about developing your identity. This is the first time that many college students are away from their parents. This is also the only time in their lives where they will eat, sleep, shit, play, learn, hang out, and interact in an environment where most of the surrounding people are the same age.
Under these circumstances, a journey is an appropriate term to use. After all, for any journey one must pack up their belongings are going somewhere else (that was a joke).
The person that I was on August 9th, 2015 (or whatever it was) is not the same person writing this article. Readers or college graduates can attest to their development after just their first year. During this period, I met several of my close friends and began to develop who I was as an individual during this time. My second and third years were more intellectually challenging since I began to explore my interest both within in my major and in other disciplines.
Along with this journey, I have made and lost friends developed and refined new interest, and learned a whole lot about personhood and identity. Going back to figuring out what I want to do in life, it is normal to not know what you want to do as a career and especially not how you want your life to look.
If these last three and a half years taught me anything is that you not supposed to know exactly what you want to do. That may sound counter-productive since college is billed an experience designed to help you do exactly that. I find fault in that logic because of what my dad would tell me when I was younger- you can do anything in this world.
Several experiences, from successes on our school's debate team to getting a student research assistantship, have proven to me that my dad was right. Before this journey started I knew but didn't believe I could do anything in this world. I am close to the end of this journey and along the way, I became a believer.
I have one more semester of undergrad and if I pinpoint exactly what I want to do then that is wonderful. If I do not, that is college.
